Mounting for rotary tool spindles and the like



Aprifi 29, 1941.. H. L. BLOOD 2,2393% MOUNTING FOR ROTARY TOOL SPIMDLES AND THE LIKE Original Filed Sept. 15, 193'? (TIE? Emu/who'll Harold L. Blood I w, wwy/ patented Apr. 29, 1194i fig g MOUNTING: FOR ROCKY M301. SPLIES will) rm L'IDKJE Harold 11.. Blood, Worcester, Mass, assignor to the Heald e Copany, Worcester, Mass, a corporation of sachusetts ":2 application September 15, 193i, Serial No. 163,983. lllivided a t applicahon September 2,1938, Serial No. 22am 4 (oi. cos-i5) The present invention relates to mountings and almost prohibitive in cost. According to for rotary spindles, such as used, particularly in my invention these dimculties are overcome, as various kinds of machine tools, for the high hereinafter described, by using ordinary metal speed rotation of boring, grinding or other cutfor that portion of the mounting which houses ting tools; the present application is a division 5 the spindle, and (by using a low-expansion metal of applicants copending application, Serial No. for the supporting portion of said mounting,

163,983, filed September 15, 1937. 7 thus making for much cheaper manufacture.

In boring, grinding and similar machines, the Other and further objects and advantages of housing or mounting for the spindle which carthe present invention will more fully appear from ries the tool win some cases a rotary work- 10 the following detailed description taken in conholder is generally fastened securely to the base nection with the accompanying drawing, in or to the reciprocatory table of the machine whichand as the housing becomes heated, through Fig. l is a longitudinal sectional view of a high speed rotation of the spindle, the distance spindle mounting embodying the invention.

of the spindle axis from the machine base or Fig. 2 is a sectional view along the line 2-2 table may be slightly increased by reason of the of Fig. 1.

expansion of the metal of the housing. Al-, Like reference characters refer to like parts though this expansion is very small, it does in the difierent figures. detrimentally affect the use of the machine where The drawing shows my invention in its appliprecision machining of workpieces is essential. cation, for example to the tool head of a boring Where the dimension of bored, turned, ground machine of the type depicted by Schmidt Patent or otherwise machined surfaces must be accu- No. 2,058,359, dated October 20, 1936. However, rate to within very small limits, as for example. this showing is merely illustrative, it being upone or two ten thousandths of an inch, the exparent that my invention is applicable to a. wide pension of such a. spindle mounting or housing, variety of uses, including the mounting of spinwith its consequent elevation of the spindle axis dies employed for the rotation of workpieces, as may frequently result in the rejection of many well as of cutting tools. of the pieces machined. One of the principal Referring to said drawing, my improved spinobjects of the present invention is to avoid or die mounting provides a U-shaped supporting minimize such changes in the position of the 3g portion l and a. housing portion 2, the latter tool spindle relative to the portion of the mabeing the portion'in which the spindle t is jourchine on which the spindle mounting rests, in nalled. In said housing 2, the spindle is jourspite of extreme changes in temperature of said nalled. on axially spaced bearings d and 5 which mounting. are represented as rocking shoe bearings. The

Where a. plurality of spindles are mounted spindle has a pulley t at one end thereof suitside [by side to make possible the performance of ably secured against rotation on the spindle, as simultaneous machining operations on a pluralby a clamping nut 11, the pulley being engaged ity of workpiece surfaces at one time, expansion by a driving belt, not shown, for obtaining high of the'spindle mountings resulting from rotation speed rotation of the spindle. The opposite end of the spindles therein .frequently varies the do of the spindle has a face plate-3 to which a. \borspacing of adjacent mountings by reason of the ing tool or a workholder may be fastened. The expansion of the metal in the spindles and their rocking shoes which provide the marings 5 supports. A further object of the present inare supported in the housing 2 by pins in; it vention is to-make possible the mounting of a will be understood that other types of b ar gs plurality of spindles side by side so that the may be utilized when desired. spacing of their mountings, even thou h hey The weight of t he spindle is counterbalanced may be in contact with each other, will not be by a shoe 22 positioned on the underside of the afiected by expansion or contraction of said spindle substantially midway between the bearspindle mountings, due to changes in temperaings d and 5. The shoe at has a recess 22a. in the outer or underside thereof for engagement It is obvious that the difiiculty with the exwith a plunger 23 vertically slidable in a bore pension and contraction of the material of such it in the housing 2. A coil spring 25 positioned a spindle mounting can be overcome by making between the plunger 23 and a cap 26 urges the the entire mounting of a metallic alloy having plunger upwardly and holds the shoe 22 against substantially no expansion as a result of inthe underside of the spindle. The spring is secreases in temperature, but such metal is relalected to exert an upward pressure on the spin tively expensive and, in many cases, more difiidle substantially equal in amount to the weight cult to machine than the more common metals,v of the sp1nd1 a d; thus a spindle mounting'composed entirely The support 8 is made of a low-expansion or a low-expansion metal would be impractical material and has flat machined surfaces 52 and faces 6% and 55 on the housing 2 to support and locate the housing so that the normal axis of rotation of the spindle 3 shall be exactly parallel to the underside of the bosses G6 on which the support rests when mounted on a machine. Suitable bolts 61 may hold the support I and housing 2 in proper relation to each other. The provision of a separate support i to which the housing 2 is positively secured makes possible a housing having a much thinner wall between the bore thereof and the outside, thereby reduclng the weight of the spindle mounting. The support A provides rigidity for the housing and makes possible the formation .of an air passage between the U-shaped support i and the housing for cooling.

The separate support l for the housing also makes the position of the spindle axis practically independent of the expansion and contraction of the ordinary metal of which the housing 2 is composed, by reason of the heating and cooling thereof so that the spindle 3 always rotates on an axis having a fixed relation to the pads 66. To this end the machined surfaces 6% and 65 are substantially in a horizontal plane passing through the spindle axis, and the support i is formed, as above stated, of a material having a low coefiicient of thermal expansion. Thus, any expansion of the housing ,2 by heating thereof has practically no effect on the vertical position of the spindle axis relative to the machine base or table on which the tool head is mounted. f

Tool heads of this character, as above stated, are frequently mounted side by side on a machine for simultaneous machining operations onof the housing 2 will thus not result in engage-- merit between adjacent housings even thoughadjoining heads may have the pads 69 and m in contact. The lateral spacing of separate heads is thus entirely independent of any heating or cooling thereof.

Since the support i and housing 2 are separate elements, the support i may be made of a suitable low-expansion material without requiring a great amount of this material and the housing 2 may be of a lower cost. material which is also more readily machined. The cost of the entire head is. therefore much less than would be the case if the same were made throughout from low-expansion material. The two piece con struction provides the advantages above out lined without the cost of making the entire spindle mounting of low-expansionmaterial.

To assure the proper functioning of the tool head, independent of temperature changes, the housing 2 is preferably made of a material having a coeflicient of thermal expansion substantially equal to the coeflicient of thermal expansion of the spindle. spindle become heated, when in operation, the clearance between the surfaces of v the rocking shoe bearings and the cylindrical surface of the Thus, as the housing and spindle cooperating therewith remains constant independent of the changes in temperature of the several elements. In cases where extreme accuracy is required it may be desirable'to take into consideration the coemclent of thermal expension of the material of the rocking shoe bearings in addition to the expansion of the housing and spindle, so that the operative clear- .ance between the bearing surfaces and the cogg operating spindle surface may bernaintalned precisely constant throughout-any temperature changes occurring in the tool head.

I claim:

1. In apparatus of the class described, a rotary spindle, bearings for said spindle, and a mounting for said spindleand its bearings to maintain the spindle axis substantially at a predetermined level, said mounting comprising a housing of ordinary relatively-expansible metal surrounding and enclosing said bearings and said spindle, and a separate support .for said housing, composed of lOW-ritXPflIlSiOD. metal, said support being out. of supporting contact with said housing except at surfaces in or above the horizontal plane of the spindle axis, thereby permitting expansion of said housing to occur, without appreciably raising the level .at which said spindle axis is maintained by said mounting.

2. In apparatus of the class described, a rotary spindle, bearings for said spindle, and a mounting for said spindle and its bearings to maintain the spindle axis substantially at a predetermined level, said mounting comprising a housing of ordinary relatively expansible metal surrounding and enclosing. said bearings and said spindle, and a separate support for'said housing, composed of low-expansion metal, said support being substantially u-shaped' in crosssection to receivesaid housing between its sides in non-contacting relation, and with its supporting engagement with said housing confined to areas substantially in or above the horizontal plane of the spindle axis.

, 3. A mounting for rotary 'tool spindles and the like, comprising bearings for the spindle, a

housing surrounding and enclosing said bearings and said spindle, and a separate support for said housing by which to-position the axis of said spindle at a predetermined level, said sup port being composed of low-expansion metal, and being in supporting contact with said housing only at or above the level of the spindle axis,

vwhereby expansion of said housing can occur without appreciably affecting the level at which said spindle axis isheld by said Su port.

i. A mounting for rotary tool spindles and the like, comprising bearings for the'spindle, a housing surrounding and enclosing said bearings and said spindle, and a separate support for said housing [by which to position the axis of said spindle at a predetermined level, said support being composed of low-expansion metal, and being in supporting contact with said housing only at or above the level of the spindle'axis, whereby expansion of said housing can occur without appreciably afiecting the level at which said spindle axis is held by said support, and means for holding said housing and support in assembled relation without appreciable restraint on the freedom of said housing to expand'in all directions.

' HAROLD L. BLOOD. 

